The BFF tag doesn’t come easy. And the day to pay your dues is at your best friend’s wedding. Here’s what you need to do.
Bride’s best friendBeing the bride’s best friend is no less challenging than being the bride herself. When your lovable,
mild-mannered friend is all stressed out, it’s your job to keep her relaxed. And not just during tiring shopping trips. Your duties start from the very beginning: helping to decide the venue, select the menu, the wedding card and even zeroing in on the exact shade of the flowers. Everything needs your attention.

But the real duties of the bride’s best friend start a few days before the wedding. You need to throw the best bachelorette party ever (pro tip: Don’t believe everything that the movies tell you, male strippers aren’t always needed!) And it will reflect well on your status as a BFF if you prepare a wedding video to play at one of the ceremonies. All you need is to log on to Facebook for the couple’s pictures. You could also document their individual childhoods through pictures. For the sangeet, keep a tab on the dancing. Be the first one on the floor. And pull other relatives/guests along too because you need to start the party.

When the big day arrives, the bride’s wish is your command. Roli Gaur Vashisht of the blog, The Crazy Indian Wedding, remembers how her set of 10 friends took turns to ensure that at least two of them were always with her. “They made sure my makeup was in order, carried my cellphone and wallet, and most importantly, made sure that I was well fed through the day,” she says.

While the family looks after the baaraat, the friends look after the bride. “The wedding lehenga weighs a ton and going to the loo can be impossible if your friends aren’t around,” laughs Shinjini Chawla, who runs the wedding blog, The Delhi Bride. Bottom line: just be around!

Groom’s best friendThe bride may hog all the attention at the wedding, but the groom’s best friend doesn’t have an easy role either. Most grooms have only the vaguest idea about what they want to wear, it’s most likely that they won’t be au courant with the latest trends. Even if you are no fashion maven, at least go through a few blogs on the Internet and magazines to find out what grooms are wearing these days. Your groom might not have as extensive a trousseau as the bride, but he will be attending at least three functions and needs clothes that won’t all look the same. So, go shopping with him.

You probably have a fair idea of what a bachelor party should include, but apart from organising it, you need to help him understand that it’s not going to be the last party of his life. Unfortunately, the bachelor party is no time to get lose-your-marbles-drunk, especially if you have a busy day ahead.

Like the bride’s friend, you too need to bring in the fun factor at the wedding and mingle with those guests who the groom is too busy or exhausted to spend time with. Aman Chawla, (Shinjini’s husband) recalls how his friends made the wedding reception a day to remember. “We wanted to have a photo booth at one of the functions, where all our guests could pose with different props and take pictures. But Shinjini and I couldn’t find time to arrange it. So my friends graciously took charge, got all the supplies, arranged the backdrop and gave us the photo booth we wanted.”

On stage, the groom might not face makeup trouble, but you may need to keep his posture in check. Nothing looks worse than a slouchy groom!

From HT Brunch, November 17

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